#so decided to counterattack my sadness with silliness

[pleasedontcareaboutme]

Have a holly jolly silly catman filled halloween all

|The Parade ~35th anniversary~ / Fly Side/ Kyouki no Dead Heat

[missramu]

A kiss to wake up

Hello everyone! I'm bringing what I believe is my longest piece so far. As a disclaimer, this was a little bit self-indulgent, so I didn't want to spare a single detail. Anyways, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

As a top note, this is kinda the prequel to this one! One day I'll make some sort of timeline, I promise. I just keep writing as the ideas come to me

Kiss number 32: to wake up

The last weeks had been an actual chaos for the fashion deisgner. Indeed, they had been chaotic, but in a sort of good way. After so many years waiting, Ramuda was about to undergo top surgery. He was finally getting his mastectomy done and, although these days he had to sign, read and send plenty of papers, he was happy. He was excited, but he was a bit scared too. After all, it was an operating room and he was still afraid of needles.

The designer sighed as he put the pen down, looking up with a faint smile. Jakurai walked by, taking his chance to kiss Ramuda’s forehead before leaving him a cup of warm tea, keeping the other one to himself.

“I can sense you are nervous”. He said tenderly, grabbing a chair and sitting by his partner’s side.

Ramuda glanced over the papers that were scattered in front of him, sipping from the cup. “Well, yeah… I’ve been waiting for this for so long, and now that’s here I just… Can’t imagine it”. His tone was calm, revealing his true self. It had taken a lot for him to learn to trust Jakurai again –they both had to relearn how to trust each other–, but he knew he didn’t need to fake anything. Not anymore.

Jakurai mumbled. “I see…”. He gently put his cup on the table, making space for the pink-haired man in his arms. As if the doctor had predicted his movements, Ramuda leaned forward and placed his head on his partner’s chest, closing his eyes.

“It’s perfectly normal to be nervous. It is a surgery, after all”. He did a brief pause, lifting Ramuda’s chin tenderly. “But everything will go smoothly. I cannot be on the operation room that day, but you will be in good hands. You will be okay, my dear”.

The designer smiled, nodded, and went in for a kiss. Jakurai eagerly corresponded, wiping Ramuda’s tears as they kissed.

“Plus, you deserve this”. Jakurai added after they broke the kiss. “You have fought bravely, and you had a lot of patience… Although I may recognize I didn’t think you were capable of having it”. The doctor added jokingly, which earned him a pout from his partner as well as a bump on his arm.

“Rude!”

Jakurai laughed softly, which made Ramuda’s pout go away quickly.

“My point is, you needn’t’ be nervous. You earned it, Ramuda. You deserve good things too”.

The designer took a deep breath, repeating those words in his head to himself. He still had a hard time believing that; but his Posse and Jakurai had been making a hard effort to help him realize his self-worth.

“Thanks, babe. I… kinda needed to hear that”.

“Then I am happy I could be of assistance, my dear”.

The days went by, and before the couple could realize it, it was time for Ramuda to check in in the hospital. Since they had agreed to live in Shinjuku, the surgery would be done in Jakurai’s hospital; and one of his co-workers was in charge of it.

Sadly for the doctor, he had to work to do. Ramuda understood that he couldn’t be in the operation room –although he wished he could–, but Jakurai felt bad about it. Old habits die hard, and he was distressed about not being able to directly help during the procedure.

However, he used his lunch break to make his partner some company. He knew his teammates would be coming soon, as they had promised to keep him entertained until the moment came. His surgery was scheduled at 16:00, and they would also wait for him to come out of the operation room.

Jakurai knocked softly on the white door, and entered the room after hearing Ramuda’s voice confirming he could come in. He knew that the designer mustn’t eat now, so he tried to somehow hide his lunchbox. As soon as the younger man realized, he laughed and encouraged him to eat.

“It’s your lunch break, silly! If you don’t eat now you won’t be able to do so later, and your patients need you on tip-top condition!”

“But it would be rude to eat in front of you, since you cannot eat before surgery…” Jakurai’s voice sounded sincerely concerned, as he was forgetting his own needs.

“Here you go again” he mumbled, rising to his feet and walking to the doctor’s side. “I’m ok, dummy. I will eat later, and y’know, my Posse will bring me a whoooole feast!” he laughed it off, grabbing the sleeve of his white coat. “Seriously, don’t worry about me. I will be fine! I mean, I’m kinda hungry, but you are working and need to eat”. Jakurai was going to counterattack, but Ramuda shushed him down. “If you don’t eat now Imma get angry! If you won’t do it for yourself and your own health and well-being, then… Do it for your patients?”

The doctor sighed softly, having been hit on his weak spot –his need to help–.

“Very well, then”. Ramuda wasn’t the right one to talk about self-care and preserving his own health, but he left the argument for another day. It was something they both have to keep working on, and they decided to help each other out.

“Bone apple teeth!” Said Ramuda jokingly as he saw him eat the first spoonful, making the older man to raise an eyebrow.

“Fascinating… I think that’s not the proper way to say it; however, it does sound similar”.

Ramuda bursted out laughing, and the doctor smiled tenderly. He would do anything to keep that smile on his face, and was willing to protect it forever.

Between laughs and fascination, Jakurai’s break was over sooner than they would have wanted it to be. The doctor neatly put everything back on his lunchbox before leaving, letting it down for a moment by the bedside table.

“I’ll see you in a couple of hours, then” said the designer, leaning in for a kiss. Jakurai was already on his way to kiss his forehead, so the gesture was well received. After that he nodded, cupping his beloved’s pale cheek.

“I will be by your side by the time you wake up. I will be waiting for you as long as I need to wait”.

Luckily for Ramuda, he wasn’t alone with his thoughts for long; for his dear friends arrived barely 25 minutes after his dear doctor left.

“Hey there man! How ya feelin’, huh?” Dice announced himself in that way, taking the seat by the left side of the bed.

“I’m tootes good! Not nervous at all, nope!”

“Heavens, and yet you dare call me the liar…” Gentaro added, closing the door behind him.

“But I’m not lying...” The writer rose an eyebrow, keeping direct eye contact with his leader. “Geez! Well, okay, maybe I am!”

The writer chuckled, shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders. “As if we didn’t know you enough, dear Ramuda”. The chuckle turned into a reassuring smile, and the leader of the Shibuya division thanked the gesture.

“I know this shit is scary and tough, but you got this! In no time at all you’ll be jumpin’ around again, you’ll see!” Dice smile was broader than Gentaro’s, but it was as reassuring as the writer’s was.

“I’m soooo lucky to have you two!” Ramuda yanked them both into a hug, and although it took them by surprise, they joined as soon as they felt his leader’s arms around their shoulders.

“Yeah, and we’re also lucky to have you!” the blue-haired announced with pride, ruffling the designer’s pink hair.

“As our beloved Dice once said,” Gentaro started saying, clearing his voice in order to make it similar to his partner’s, “we are the best, amazing, bounded-tight Posse!”

“Hey, quit messin’ around!” the impersonated man grumbled, much to the impersonator’s and his only public delight.

Their dialogue was suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door, and soon after a nurse entered the room.

The three members of Fling Posse quickly went to check the time, realising she came to bring Ramuda to the operation room. He took a deep breath, hugged his teammates tightly, and bis them farewell.

“See you later, Ramuda! I’ll make sure to bring you plenty of snacks!” Dice hugged him as tightly as he was being embraced, sad to leave the hug.

“And I will finance that, for our beloved Dice is as penniless as always”.

Ramuda laughed at their bickering, happy to see them as cheerful as always. Maybe it was selfish of him, but he thought they were doing that for him. Gentaro and Dice didn’t want to see his leader gloomy, so they did their very best to cheer him up. The designer thought that perhaps it was selfish to think so; but that was the truth. They loved him dearly, so it wasn’t selfish of him. It was a reassurance that he was loved and cherished.

The hours went by, the clock ticking its way to noon and, after that, to dawn. Three hours passed, and around seven o’ clock in the evening, Ramuda’s top surgery was successfully completed. All that was left was for him to wake up.

The usual procedure would have been to leave him in the awakening room for up to two hours, until he had fully recovered from the anaesthesia. However, Jakurai’s turn finished a couple of hours ago and, after pulling a couple of strings, he managed to let them take him to his room, where he would personally supervise Ramuda until he woke up. The doctor felt he owed him that, but it wasn’t his only reason- he wanted to be by his side when the designer woke up and, if something happened, be the one to tend him.

When the clock hit quarter to nine, Ramuda started to come back to his senses. Jakurai was by the window, watching the neon lights of Shinjuku flicker; but as soon as he felt movement, he rushed by his partner’s side.

It took the designer fifteen more minutes to fully wake up, still a bit disorientated. When he fully opened his eyes, he encountered Jakurai’s vast oceans looking directly at him, as well as his calm smile.

“Wake up, my dear”. He approached his side, taking a seat by the verge of the bed. He tenderly moved his bangs with his hands, kissing Ramuda’s forehead as full of love as possible.

Ramuda smiled sluggishly, still having a hard time focusing. “I’m awake, silly…”

Jakurai chuckled, caressing his hair softly. “I can see that, dear. You did a great job”.

The designer smiled again, reaching to grab his lover’s hand. “Did I?” Jakurai nodded in response, leaving him do whatever he wanted with his hand –which was to cuddle it against his cheek–.

They spent almost an hour cuddling in silence, enough for Ramuda to completely awake. As his energy came back, he felt more and more excited to feel his chest. Thankfully enough, since he was small and slim, the scars wouldn’t be that big. They would be visible under his nipples, but it didn’t matter. He would wear them with pride, as a badge that showed his victory over Chuuoku again. The doctor felt he was fully recovered from the anaesthesia now, and was glad to see him cheerful again.

Ramuda turned to him with puppy eyes, as if asking permission. As much as it pained Jakurai, he left him out of the embrace, helping him to sit on the bed. He understood his look: he wanted to check it for himself.

“I wouldn’t advise taking the bandages off, but you can feel your chest. It should not hurt much”. Ramuda’s smile broadened, and as he muttered his thanks, he put his own hands on his chest. The anaesthesia was wearing off and it was a bit uncomfortable, but the sheer joy of feeling himself completely flat made him forget about that. After years of using a binder, of feeling those tiny bumps under it no matter what, they were finally gone. No more binding, no more swimming shirts and no more hiding. There was nothing to hide now.

Tears of joy started to roll down his cheeks, and Jakurai quickly wiped them for him.

“Congratulations, my love”. His voice sounded full of joy, hope and love. All of that, things that Ramuda and he deserved, and now they were getting. Seeing the designer unable to move much due to the bandages and his own feelings, he made the first move and hugged him, letting Ramuda’s head on his shoulder. The embrace was mutual, the younger man hugging his waist as tightly as his chest let him.

With teary eyes and the brightest of smiles, he looked up to Jakurai, who cupped his cheek and kissed him fondly. They remained like that for a couple of minutes, which quickly turned into half an hour.

“Ramuda?” He asked with a gentle voice, as if he was afraid it would scare him. He then realized he had fallen asleep, and let out an affectionate sigh. He carefully moved him back to the bed, letting him rest after tucking him in. As soon as he was sure he was soundly asleep, he walked to the window, watching the restless streets of his Shinjuku as alive as every night.

Jakurai was happy. He knew this was important for Ramuda, so he tried his best to look calm. Inside, his brain had been worrying about the designer all day, making it difficult for him to focus on his job. He spent all his free time sighing and looking at the clock, which was unusual of him: he never worried about how much of his shift was left; but today he was driven by his own worries and guilt. Jakurai fought bravely against said guilt and managed to control the situation and himself. Still, he couldn’t wait to see Ramuda. He needed to see him alright, and being unable to control the situation was driving him insane.

And now, after a long intervention and an even longer day, it was done. The doctor watched Ramuda sleeping in the reflection of the window, and smiled again. He could see his chest rising softly as he breathed, and that was what ultimately made him keep smiling. All his worries left with that sight, his mind regaining peace.

Fatigue was taking its toll over him, so the doctor decided to sit down by the bed. His plan was to rest his eyes and legs for a bit, wanting to keep himself awake all night to watch over Ramuda. Before he could realize, though, he fell asleep holding his partner’s hand. It had been a long day, and his body talked louder than his plans.

As if the designer knew whose hand was holding his, he grabbed it back in his sleep.

Outside, the hustle of bustle of Shinjuku was never-ending. It didn’t matter to the couple, as they were soundly asleep side by side. At the end of the day, that was what kept them moving forward. They had been through a lot as a couple, but it was their similarities and wills what brought them back together. They still had a lot to work on, but one step at a time. For now, they had earned their peace and happiness, and they were going to spend it doing what their hearts desired the most –although it took them long to realize it– : being by each other’s side.

[precuredaily]

Precure Day 113

Episode: Futari wa Precure Splash Star 15 - “Softball is the Bond between Mother and Daughter” Date watched: 12 April 2019 Original air date: 14 May 2006 Screenshots: https://imgur.com/a/6udeh4g Project info and master list of posts: http://tinyurl.com/PCDabout

Young Saki is always a win

Now that Michiru and Kaoru’s allegiance is known, we can see them truly playing their part as infiltrators. They spy on Saki's morning softball practice and comment on how silly and futile it seems. Gohyaan pops up and tells them to return to their fountain, but without even batting an eye they unanimously say “no” and walk off to class. During literature class, all of the softball players are dozing off, to the ire of the teacher, and an offhand comment from Mai that they’ll do well in the tournament tomorrow gets the sisters thinking.

[[evil thoughts]]

During the after school softball practice, they intercept Dorodoron before he can attack the Precures, and remind him that full-frontal assaults without a strategy are why Moerumba lost. They hint that the girls’ power as Precure seems to be connected to their moods and enjoyment, so Dorodoron decides to play coy and sticks a tiny pebble Uzainaa in her catcher’s mitt that will cause her pitches to go wildly off target. This works for a while and it really kills Saki’s spirit. That night at dinner, she has no appetite and goes to sleep early, until she has a nightmare about missing 100 pitches in a row and allowing the other team to win in a landslide.

She snaps awake at about 1 AM and realizes she’s hungry so she goes downstairs to grab something. Saki finds her mother in the kitchen, working on new confections for the store, and after some motherly prodding Saki unloads all her troubles. Mom reminds her that she didn’t start out great, and missed a lot when she was a child too. Her mother told her then that the most important things were to “Give it your all, try your hardest, and have fun!” and she reiterates that now. At the time Saki wanted to use her mom’s glove to see if it would help her, but of course she was much too small for it to fit her hand back then. Now, however, her hands are about the same size as her mother’s, and so Saori suggests her daughter try using her glove for the game tomorrow.

(as an aside, I realize I am very much underselling this scene, it’s a powerful moment, but in my effort to keep this concise I’m having to skimp on the details)

The next day Saki is feeling enthusiastic again after her mother’s pep talk and she eagerly chats with Mai on the trolley about getting to use her mom’s glove in the match. Dorodoron is riding on top of the train, somehow completely unnoticed, and overhears this, and he is not pleased. He intercepts the duo on a bridge and says that he’ll let them go and not fight them today if Saki agrees to use her own glove. This sets off some alarm bells in the girls’ heads and they go back and forth, trying to find out why he’s so adamant about this. Finally, when Saki refuses to use her own glove, he gets angry and releases the Uzainaa, growing it back to giant size, and then somewhat fusing with it (not pictured).

Saki and Mai transform into Pretty Cure and realize that this Uzainaa is what’s been throwing Saki off her game. Dordoron taunts her, assuming that her spirits will still be down and therefore Precure’s power will be lessened and he’ll have an easy fight. He didn’t count on his ruse being revealed, or the power boost they would get from their righteous anger at his foul play. The girls strike in unison, brushing aside his attacks and delivering strong counterattacks of their own, surprising the soft-spoken general. Bloom explains that, despite his efforts, she still has the support of her mom, Egret, and all of her friends and teammates, and the goal is to do your best and have fun, so she wouldn’t let him bring her down. The Cures perform Twin Stream Splash on the monster and Dorodoron beats a hasty retreat. After it’s gone, Bloom expresses her disgust at the underhanded tactic, and the camera pans up to show Michiru and Kaoru spying on them from above, looking disappointed.

possible symbolism: Bloom and Egret facing toward each other, while Michiru and Kaoru face away from each other

Michiru says that the Precure are unexpectedly strong, while Kaoru retorts that it’s more like Dorodoron is unexpectedly weak, but they both agree that Precure have powers they weren’t aware of and they’ll have to keep watching them.

At the game, Saki scores the winning strikeout on the opposing team and everybody celebrates. She goes hom and makes dinner for her family that night: a special omelette! Now, the usual trope for pink cures is that they can’t cook and their food tastes awful, so imagine my surprise when her whole family agrees that the dinner was really good! Happy ending!

Look at those Kiryuu sisters, they just arrived and they’re already changing the game. Kiriya spied on Black and White the same as Michiru and Kaoru are doing to Saki and Mai, but he did very little to help his sister in battle. On the flipside, Michiru and Kaoru are giving advice to Dorodoron about better strategies than just charging in and demanding the location of the Fountain of the Sun. Trying to throw Saki off her groove was actually quite clever, and it would have worked if he hadn’t been such a dunce about it. He could have easily hidden near the girls and had the Uzainaa jump from Saki’s glove to her mother’s, further wounding her pride and confidence, but instead he jumped out and made a very suspicious demand that led to his premature defeat. I feel justified in picking apart silly villain plans because, in this show and later shows, the villains can and have done better, even on the instances when they still ultimately lose, so it’s not just me being salty that the good guys always win because it’s a hero show. Certainly, Saki’s speech about being inspired by her mom and friends was powerful, but imagine how much more powerful it would have been if Dorodoron hadn’t played his hand so early. Then again, that he needed the Kiryuus to point him in the right direction says a lot about his competence as a villain as well.  M & K’s scheming is fun, though, and I look forward to seeing what else they come up with. (I’ve honestly forgotten)

Also, the Kiryuus are the subject of a lot of interesting camera work. There’s that high angle, which is also meant to include Dorodoron, and there’s a low angle from his point of view:

Earlier when Gohyaan showed up to say hello, there was an extreme closeup on Michiru’s face showing her just barely moving her eyes and nothing else to acknowledge his presence.

Dorodoron isn’t exempt from the fun, he gets this one distinct shot that I really like:

For someone so timid he’s surprisingly expressive.

Saki gets to be the subject of some creative mood lighting and beautiful sunset animation.

I guess I’m a sucker for sunsets. There’s also these shadows that symbolize her sadness when she feels like she’s lost her skill:

And then the next day after talking to her mother, she’s bright and well-lit again.

Now, I’m going to cheat a little bit here, because I love pointing out poor-quality animation when it pops up. This following shot was only visible for a single frame before dramatically zooming out, so the low quality makes sense for the distance, but the split second that it’s there as a closeup..... it’s bad.

But as I said, their fight has some great synchronized action and that gives us shots like this:

It feels a lot more interesting than some previous episodes of the show. Y’all know I didn’t give Karehaan the time of day, and even Moerumba got a bit tiring. The villains themselves are endemic of my larger issues with the show: it was good but it wasn’t really doing anything. Now, however, we’ve got some much-needed intrigue and that’s helped the show a lot in this episode. As I recall, it only gets better from here, so I hope you enjoy coming on this journey with me.

The last couple episodes haven’t had much in the way of Saki’s catchphrase, so this episode decided to make up for it in spades!

Pink Precure Catchphrase Count: 3 Zekkouchou Nari (from Saki) Saki’s mom also gets in on the fun with a “Zekkouchou Nari” of her own, and.... Saki uses her anti-catchphrase, “I’m in bad form!” twice!

Miracle Drop Count: 2

[alexben10blog]

Chapter 2

Ben wake up with the sound of the alarm, shut-in down at one blow almost automatic. He gives a big yawn before huddle in his bed. “I don´t want go to the school.”

―Wake up, we have thing to do. ― The punch in his head shake him up, moving around to finish find the reason of his pain. Azmuth was on his bedside table looking him with his arms crossed behind his back. The memories of yesterday arrived suddenly.

― And I thought that everything was a dream. ―  

―You are not so lucky. ―

― Yes, I noticed. ― Ben get up of his bed and do his normal morning routine looking his desk, it was already electronic pieces of different devices and someone of them already assemble. In middle of all this it was a one who will recognize in any place.

It gave a sound of indignation to the frog who is given the back in favor the invention in building. Ben was about to claim him if it was not interrupted for his mom down stairs.

―Ben! Honey, Are you alright? ― Ben saw with anger Azmuth, and his bet his money It was a little smile of satisfaction in his frog face.

―Nothing mom! I just saw a big, fat and ugly insect! ― His scream back, Ben get close to Azmuth both of them with a sharp look and all the intention to start a fight.  ― What the heck you do to my videogame? ―

― I needed to build my communicator, you know the thing you said you will help me. ― Ben it was almost sure that Azmuth don´t need his videogame to build his dumb communicator, but he had told him that he would help and his not had any prove that Azmuth just did it to annoy him so he just closed his mouth.

Azmuth it was sure to don´t need the silly device, but this was a lesson to the arrogant kid about no lying and respect their elders. Ben give him a last angry look before to grab his backpack and give to Azmuth a sign to enter in.

Ben went down the stair carefully. He was annoying, but Azmuth still hurt and he was not that mean. He continues with his morning routine, saving food for Azmuth before his dad left in front to the school. Saying goodbye with a hug, wait until don´t see him to get away for the school, been stopped for a pain in his nape.  

―What you think you are doing? ― Almost have to turn his head 180 grades just for see Azmuth peek out of his backpack and still even so it distinguishes his frown.

―Get out of here, you said we have a lot to do. ―

―You have to go the school; the education is important. Silly kid. ―

―Great, a nerd alien. ― He pulled out another howl before to feel a heavy hand in his shoulder. Nervous notice the professor who look him with a raised eyebrow pointing to the entry to the school.

Ben enter with the head down whisper rudeness to Azmuth. Getting another punch.

―Stop doing that! ― Half whisper, half scream. Someone been pushed to the lockers it distracts him for his angry to Azmuth. Ben watching how DJ and Crash they were attacking another of them victims. Ben knowing him, it was Jeremy a very applied kid for his class.

Both bullies robbed his homework before to winnow his thing over the place. Ben just stand up without doing anything. Disappointed with himself go to help the kid with grapping his stuffs.

―Thanks Ben. ―

―It was nothing. ― “Really it was nothing”. Azmuth in the backpack notice the sound of regrets in his voice. ―I´m sorry that your homework was stolen. ―

―Don´t worried. I have a plan B if this happened, what is basic all the time.  ― Ben cringed with more shame, tried to hide with a smile and a thumps up.

The classes passed normal, meanwhile Azmuth took mental notes of how defective the educative system have the humans. At times he feels the need to get outside to explain well to the children whom received an incomplete education. But he had a great control of himself and stay in the bag of Ben making calculations for his communicator.

In a point the curiosity of Azmuth it was more and decide to look what Ben are doing, discreetly watching in his work. There was in math class, where the teacher was given them some leaves with problems to solve, so primitive in comparison of exercises applied to inventions and real problems. Azmuth was pleased, in a purely educational way, seeing that Ben solved the exercise before much of his classmates.

Ben finish his math problems, the true is wasn´t too hard. The bullies of his class threw balls of paper at his partner who already delivered his resolute sheet. They returned it with some notes to correct, but even so it had been the first to deliver it. With that he earned the mockery of them in addition to the nickname "nerd".

Be a “nerd” it was something to make fun, everybody mock to a nerd. Smart children that stood out are the worst, that is way they made fun of them that what Ben think. Whit a grin Ben took the eraser to change his answers. He stopped when he felt a tug of hair causing him to scream.

―Mister Tennyson, there is problem? ―

―None one, teacher. ―

― So, I do not think you cares to show us your work. ― Ben stuttering an answer attempt, causing the teacher to grab the answer sheet with impatience. She read each one of them changing his frown to an almost satisfying gesture. ―Good job, mister Tennyson. I hope continues like this. ―

Ben felt his cheeks burn as they have the attention of everyone, behind him heard they called him "nerd" with mockery. This was the worst.

.

.

.

Ben hurried up to get out of school making sure no one is falling him. He was furious, who thought that Azmuth was to do that to him? Arrived at the garbage bin and without care drop his bag. Azmuth let go out a groan and almost he regretted, but shake the feeling remembering what the little one made him it happens.

―What is wrong with you? Why you pull my hair? ― Azmuth saw him incredulous, almost with an indignant anger that made Ben step back.

―Better answer me, to understand you irrational thinking. Why you will change your right answers to wrong answers? ―

―And why you care? It is my education! ―

—Yes, and it sad to see how you ruin just for a few words ― Azmuth start to travel to the place searching piece could help him, leaving alone Ben to let him go all the furious noise he wants. He had get away to Ben, that kid is simply frustrating.

―OK, I don´t have idea how is in you frog planet, but here in earth thing make you different are bad. Do you hear me? ¡Bad! They can get to hurt you physically in the worst case. ― Azmuth stopped while ponder the word of Ben.

In Galvan Prime the intelligence it was the resource most valued of all, what Ben did is not just would look bad, it would be an insult for all galvans. But he is right, the earth it´s different. Front what he saw brute force it was the important while the intelligence it´s something to mockery, which he considers truly outrageous.

Ben sit in the ground making draws with his finger. It was not upset anymore, just dismal. It was not his fault understand faster than others but if he showed, it was a ticket to punch city and he not going to go there, that they made fun of him by calling a freak it was enough.

Azmuth want prove his point of view make him understand is not bad be clever, take away that nasty thought been different or more smart that the others it was equal of wounds. Again, to comfort it was not an area in which had a specialization and never got to comfort him. The sound of propellers distracted him, apparently unwanted company arrived.

―Benjamin! ―Ben, who it was up for the sound, catch the metal wristbands that Azmuth threw. ― This gone a help you. ― Ben put them on and instantly a small trigger went out in each one.

Five robots came with the guns pointing directly to Azmuth, apparently now they do not come by the omnitrix. Ben throw himself to Azmuth protective without thinking about it rolling over his back to put him save. Then he points with the wristbands to the robot shooting up a thunderbolt who destroyed his metal head.

―This think is great! ―

―Focus! ― Ben barely managed to dodge one of his attacks before counterattacking. "I have to be careful."  

Azmuth clung tightly to Ben's shoulder to keep from falling as he ran through the dumpster dodging each attack. In front of him saw a column of crushed cars, in his mind already formed a plan to get rider of the robots. He strives in anticipating them pass the column and shoot the base collapsing aver two of the androids.

Now only left two.  Ben smiled skid under of the rubble, one of them following him closely while the other disappeared from his sight. He continued to launch unsuccessful attacks to give his pursuer while his movements became increasingly clumsy and fatigue was reaching him.

― Watch out! ― Azmuth scream point in front of him the autonomous. Ben crouched down with his back to the ground, both robots stood in front of him who without hesitation shot with both wrist guards both robbing them to then roll out of the rubble that fell.

With agitated breathing he was recovering little by little almost unbelieve for what he had achieved. Azmuth descended from his shoulder to look for the robotic parts that could be used, but that doesn´t matter to Ben who start to laugh rising suddenly, adrenalin yet running for his veins.

― Did you see what I did?  It was amazing! First, I was scared and then Pow! Pow! I managed to destroy them! ― He continued his laughter until his stomach hurt.

―Not so bad of a nerd, uh? ― Azmuth give him the back but the sound of his voice just can describe like vanity. Ben smile shrugging his shoulders.

―Maybe you are one of the cool nerds, maybe. ―

―I was talking about you. ― Ben look him without knowing what he meant. ― You are a quick thinker, making a plan in seconds and pull in action effectively. You know when to wait and when to act, without forgetting the fact of being able to solve problems mathematically and not only practical. It's a pity that you put so much effort into destroying yourself so that you see it. ―

Ben lowered his head with an embarrassed flush adorning his cheeks. Azmuth gave him more credit than he deserved, even though he was right to the fact he is boycotting himself. But he does not want be hurt and made fun of him. Somehow that did not sound like a good excuse anymore.

―I already recollect enough material; the best thing is leave before they send more robots. ― Ben nodded before picking up the pieces, putting them in his backpack, and at Azmuth.

― How you can build two laser wrist bands in one night, but no a communicator? ―

—You want to build the intergalactic communicator with the primitive device of your race? Just remember to not getting electrocuted in the wiring, calibrate the reaching beyond the galaxies program it to be direct to a single person and not filtered to secondary people. But if you're sure it's that easy, come on, be my guest. ―

―No, I will pass. ―  Ben smiled nervously. Azmuth rolled her eyes, something that was doing a lot around this child.

.

.

.

Another day and Ben is back to school, after yesterday he was not going to try to skip classes with Azmuth in his backpack. The whole day was normal until the last math class where the teacher gave them another math problem sheet to solve.

Took the paper and start to answer one by one. When he finishes gave it to the teacher, behind him saw like some are making fun of him for be the first one in finish. Most of them believe is all wrong. The teacher smile before give him back the paper with a ten score.

―Good job, mister Tennyson. ― Ben nod and then go back to sit in his place. Some ignored it, others saw it with disbeliefs, some made fun of it and there were those who said that it cheated. He cringed in his seat, sticking his head in the back of his seat with some dejection.

 He felt on the nape of his neck something caressing her hair. Ben relaxed to feel the slight gesture of recognition and approval, he should not care what people say. Because he does this for himself, because he's a cool nerd.

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Hi guys. As all tumblr know it is very difficult to follow a fanfic here (experience first of all) so I leave a link to follow it easier.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13326605/1/Ben-G-10-English-Ver

[zerochanges]

Mobile Suit Gundam Narrative - One Night Movie Premiere

If you told me ten years ago that I would be able to regularly watch anime movies on the big screen in theatres I would have surely not believed you. Besides maybe a few Pokemon movies or an occasional film in some mega franchise I don’t particularly care for such as Naruto, the prospect would probably seem alien to me even. So it’s funny how times have changed and how anime screenings in theatres is becoming increasingly more common in North America. Just last month I was able to watch the phenomenal Dragon Ball Super Broly film in a packed theatre with a ton of other nerds and it was a delightful experience. Before that I got to see the fun anime version of Die Hard known as My Hero Academia: Two Heroes, and before that a love letter to Go Nagai known as Mazinger Z Infinity! Now only a month after Broly I get to watch an honest-to-God Mobile Suit Gundam motion picture in a theatre too? I feel like the luckiest guy alive. 

If I am being honest, I actually hate going to the cinema most of the time, and spent many years avoiding doing just that. I was always the type of person that was happy enough to rent a movie once it released on DVD/BD and that was the extent I would need out of cinema at large. The only exception I started to make was when Disney purchased Star Wars, and that was more out of fear that ravenous fans online couldn't keep their mouths shut than it was about anything else. Over the years however I started to develop a greater appreciation towards movie theatres at large and a lot of that has to probably do with anime. As I began to become a serious collector of anime and made the transition from my old DVDs to crisper BDs I realized I was at the point where as a fan I wanted the most out of my all time favorite movies--because these were not just my favorite anime movies but my actual favorite movies, and that’s when I realized I truly wish I could have seen them the way they were meant to be; on the big screen, with an insanely powerful surround sound system, with fans all gathered around cheering at the best moments. I will probably never get this experience for Akira, or Galaxy Express 999, or the many other films that mean the world to me now, but I can get the experience for future movies, so I don’t want to miss out ever again.

Gundam is one of my favorite franchises from my childhood. As a young kid I fell in love with the amazing robot designs and was blown away at the prospect of an anime that just felt so different from DBZ, which besides Pokemon was probably my only real understanding of anime at that age. As a teen and young adult especially the franchise became increasingly important to me and left a lasting impression on my psyche. I can’t tell you my favorite Gundam series nowadays because the answer will probably be different every time. Maybe I’ll say the original Mobile Suit Gundam, warts and all, it’s everything I love about anime from the 1970’s and to this day I still love the original Ocean Group dub from Canada. This dub while wooden and showing its age terribly will forever be etched in my mind as the definitive voices for most of the Universal Century characters despite Shuichi Ikeda buttery smooth, ecstasy inducing voice in most of the Japanese series. Maybe I’ll say Zeta Gundam as Kamile was a character my younger self identified a lot with and the series as a whole left a very strong impression on me. Maybe I’ll say Turn A Gundam, a beautiful psychedelic series that displays some of the best writing from series creator Tomino. 

So yes, having a chance to see any Gundam film in theatres was something I couldn't miss. Even if said film ended up just okay it wouldn't matter, as not in my wildest dreams did I actually think I would get this opportunity. I figured the closest I would ever be to seeing Gundam on the big screen would be if I happened to be in Japan for some reason around the time a new Gundam OVA or film was being screened. When Gundam Narrative tickets went on sale for North America I bought them the day online orders were opened and was even the first person to buy a seat at the theatre (thanks to reserved seating I could see nobody else had bought a seat yet). It didn't matter to me that I had to drive 45 minutes to the cinema, nor did it matter to me that I honestly knew nothing about Gundam Narrative, I just wanted to experience Gundam this way at least once in my life. And so last night I made the trek across the city and finally got to see Gundam like I never have. Now I have decided I want to share some of my thoughts and impressions about it. This won’t be a formal review, nor is it meant to be, as more or less I’m just expositing some of my thoughts, off the cuff.

First a little background information. Sunrise’s current "UC NexT 0100" project that tackles the next century of Gundam’s UC (Universal Century) time-line as well as their ambitious promise to deliver a new theatrical Gundam film every 1-2 years from 2018 onward is something to behold, so it’s no big surprise to me that the first film to kick off both of these initiatives would be a sequel to the highly acclaimed Gundam Unicorn OVA series. Saying Sunrise is kind of on a Unicorn kick right now would be an understatement after all. I actually don’t mind this so much however like a lot of people seem to, as Unicorn deserves all the praise it got and there is no two-ways about it being a pivotal factor behind Sunrise’s returning commitment to the UC time-line again after releasing nothing major in it for nearly a decade. Gundam Narrative serving as a sequel to Gundam Unicorn is something I am totally neutral about. 

My greater concern going into the Gundam Narrative film was more that Gundam and films have a pretty rocky history. Honestly most Gundam movies tend to be more on the awful side. If I had to rate all the ones I've seen I would probably only say Gundam Thunderbolt: December Sky and Gundam Thunderbolt: Bandit Flower are fantastic, the original Mobile Suit Gundam film trilogy is an excellent compilation movie series and a good enough replacement for its own television version, the Zeta New Translation films are incredibly disappointing and omit too much, Char’s Counterattack is a hot mess that barely makes a lick of sense, Gundam F91 would have been a fantastic TV show but as a movie it makes me sad, A Wakening of the Trailblazer is okay but also undone by its own weirdness, Endless Waltz is what you would expect out of Wing, the Turn A compilation movies are pointless, and G-Savior sure was … a thing that exist.

Well I am happy to say Gundam Narrative is among the rare films for the franchise that I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish! A lot of this has to do with the scale being relatively small versus the usual scale in Gundam films that are way too big for their own good. Narrative’s laser focus on chasing after the missing Unit 03, the Golden Phoenix sibling to the two Unicorn and Banshee units we've seen in the previous Gundam Unicorn series allows it to tell a story largely separated from politics and the world at large--and let’s the characters become the main focal point of the film like any good movie should. 

This aspect alone is missing from so many other Gundam films and is partly why so many fail at being a good viewing experience. I’d say the few that do find that focus, mainly the Thunderbolt series of films and the original trilogy of movies made from the 1979 TV series are the best in the franchise’s filmography. A ton of other Gundam films tend to be bloated as well with rather boring middle sections, so the brisk fast pace of this 90 or so minute runtime for Narrative was a welcome relief. There are some awkward cuts to the film sure, but honestly I felt this beat sitting in the theatre for two and a half hours bored at the long winded middle section that goes nowhere like some previous Gundam films are especially guilty of. This was just enough time to tell a story of this scope properly. Of course the characters and scope of the story isn't enough to carry an entire film so the fantastic soundtrack from returning Unicorn composer Hiroyuki Sawano helped to sell a lot of scenes in the film as well.

The biggest factor that made Narrative for me however had to be the film’s focus on the more metaphysical aspects of Newtypes. Despite my disliking of a lot of Char’s Counterattack I still find the more psychedelic (so to say) aspects of it to be fascinating, just as I always have when such spiritual topics have shown up in prior Gundam works by Tomino and the many teams at Sunrise. While far from perfect I always enjoyed this kind of kooky spiritualism to the Gundam universe, a sort of new age 80’s science fiction interpretation of the soul would be the best way I can describe it but there’s no real way for me to do it justice nor to make it not sound ridiculous. Since Tomino has left a lot of Universal Century Gundam series have focused more on everyday soldiers instead and not so much on Newtypes, the future evolution of mankind, and the soul. In fact I always felt Sunrise somewhat shied away from a lot of these aspect to Gundam since then, so when we got to see this aspect return near the very end of Gundam Unicorn it was a nice treat to me personally. Having it permeate almost the entire runtime of Narrative’s story had me over the moon. A lot of people disagree, and more power to them, but I just can’t get enough out of the spiritual aspects seen in Narrative. 

Gundam Narrative being a modern UC time-line production means it of course has references and lore connections to a ton of other classic Gundam series and moments. I really enjoyed most them even if they were just silly fan service moments. I love that we got to see the famous Colony Drop drawn with modern day high budget animation and it wasn't just reused old footage. Getting to see clips of the Psycho Gundam ravage Hong Kong City was a joy on the big screen even if it lasted only about 10 seconds. I loved that we got to hear some of Char’s Dakar speech again in Narrative--this gave us an opportunity to hear Keith Silverstein, the modern English voice of Char since 2010 handle this legendary speech of his from Zeta Gundam. 

Speaking of the English dub my favorite performances were definitely Griffin Puatu’s portrayal of the protagonist Jona Basta that had to carry a lot of the emotional weight of the film and Stefan Martello’s portrayal of the off-the-walls insane Zoltan Akkanen who was just a pure fun villain that ate up every scene he was in. The Narrative Gundam itself being a reworked prototype of Amuro’s Nu Gundam from Char’s Counterattack four years ago was also a fun way to fit another Gundam into this time frame and I love it gave us such a classic looking Gundam in the Unicorn era of the franchise.

I had almost zero expectations for Gundam Narrative, and all I really wanted was the big screen experience for Gundam. As someone that loves the psychedelic spiritual aspect of Tomino’s old works, and someone with zero expectations that a Gundam movie can really be all that good anyways I walked away from that theatre last night loving what I saw. Gundam Narrative has me personally excited for the future of Gundam films, especially if it means we may see more theatrical screenings in North America for said films. This is probably not a film for everyone, and is definitely heavy on both your love of Gundam Unicorn and your love of some of the craziest stuff Tomino would whip out in his heyday of working on the franchise, but if you’re like me I think this one will be a lot of fun, even off the big screen. 

[shuichiru]

A trip to destiny

Sorry for the delay~ Work is hell these days so I couldn’t update it sooner.

Here comes the first fic of the Spring holidays contest!

@theotakufairy asked for a little of lovely Rupert ♥ Hope you like it~

Genre: angst

WARNING: it has a little gore.

It was so quiet, the only sounds were the crashing waves and their light footsteps. The gentle wind caressed her skin and she sighed as she took in the moment. It was worth finding this secluded shore.

　-Are you tired? Do you want to sit a little? - Rupert asked with concern and Mina smiled. 　-I’m okay. This is a wonderful place. 　-Yes, it is. – His face lightened up. - I can’t wait to bring here our little baby. He rubbed his hand over her tummy, making her ticklish. 　-I want the three of us to travel the world. I don’t want my baby to feel the same as I did. – He explained, excited. 　-This summer sounds good, doesn’t it? – She squeezed his hand. 　-Yes. – He squeezed back. Last time Humphrey checked her, he said that in less than a month, she’d give birth to a healthy baby.

Or that was the idea.

Suddenly, a monster Mina had never seen in her life appeared. 　-This is my territory, let’s go! You rotten vampires! – It growled, showing its teeth. Rupert frowned. 　-This is a beach, it shouldn’t be the territory of an Ahuizotl. 　-Shut up! – It jumped to Mina with the claws out.

Rupert tried to protect her unsheathing his sword and stopping his attack. Hen then, counterattacked it. But it feinted and dashed towards her. She could avoid being stabbed, but the clash sent her flying a couple of meters before crashing against a rock. The impact made her breathless. And as Rupert turned to make sure she was okay, the monster’s claws ripped his body. 　-Rupert! Its eyes fixed on you as the monster smiled ear to ear.

The nightmare was just starting.

As she tried to get up to help Rupert, she felt the sharpest pain coming from her insides. It was like a knife into her core and as her eyesight dropped, she could feel the wetness of a dark fluid expanding between her thighs. 　-No, God. Please. Not this. – She started to sob. Her trembling hands touched the liquid and there was no doubt about it. It was blood.

A lot.

The strong pain started again, making her mind go numb. She fell back to the floor. This wasn’t supposed to be like this.

She was going to be giving birth in a bed at the hotel Libra Sincera, with Rupert gripping her hand while Humphrey would be attending her and giving some kind of anaesthesia. Not in the middle of a beach. Not because a fight. And mostly, not for the baby to die.

Another wave of pain rushed into her body. This time, stronger. It was like there were knives inside of her, and they were trying to have their way out. She heard a panting coming closer, so she showed her fangs. Even though she was weak and in pain, she wouldn’t fall without putting a good fight. 　-Calm down, Mina, darling, it’s me. –Rupert’s voice was soothing as he took her hand.

His shirt was stained with a mix of his blood and the monster’s. The familiar smell of his blood was making her awkwardly thirsty. Her eyes turned red. 　-R-RupNnngg!! The pain was in crescendo. She wasn’t sure if she could take it anymore. Rupert wiped the tears she didn’t know she had. 　-I’m so sorry Mina… -His voice trembled. – If only I hadn’t say I wanted to go to a trip… She could see in his face the reject, fear and despair. He closed his eyes for a moment and then, as if he’d found his resolution, he started to talk fast. 　-We’ll have to try it. I’ve read a lot of books about this since you told me you were pregnant. I’ll help you. You’re strong and I know you will do well. He then kissed her on the lips. 　-I love you. Always and forever.

He positioned between her legs, spreading them a little further. 　-No! Wait! – Mina’s complained as she tried to close them. It might seem like a silly thing, given the circumstances. But she didn’t want him to do this kind of thing. 　-There’s no way I’ll leave you here alone to look for a doctor.

She could see as he was trying to act tough, but she knew better. They’ve been for too long together for her to miss the feelings he was concealing. Another wave of pain clashed, stronger, longer than the previous ones. She couldn’t help but scream. Mina started to take all the air she missed with the scream but in the midway another rush made you scream again. 　-Just a little more, you’re doing well! You can do it. Her head is almost out! “Only the head? What about the rest?” Mina moaned as she freaked. At least, the little part of her mind that wasn’t thinking in loop: “please, make it stop, just stop it. It hurts!” The next pain rush, made her vision go black for some seconds while a buzz made her unable to listen to the sea waves. 　-Good job, just a little more. – He cheered. He looked at her worrying. But she missed it. Just leaning backwards, facing at the starry sky as she took over those feelings. Took over her reasoning, every time, her eyesight went black and it lasted longer. 　-We made it! Rupert’s voice sounded so distant. The buzz sound and the darkness overlapped.

That was the only thing that remained.

An incoherent buzz and darkness.

Just darkness.

…

RUPERT POV

　-We made it! She’s okay! You’ve made it! Even in these circumstances, I was the happiest man alive the moment I could take our daughter between my arms, her umbilical cord still joining both of them. I looked at Mina and my smile vanished just as quickly. Her body had gone limp after her last scream. 　-M-Mina? I put our little baby in one arm and cut the cord with my sword after cleaning it in my clothes. I reached my hand towards Mina. The skin was too pale, even for her.

In my panic I had missed the most important thing: we need blood. I bit myself making the wound as profound as possible and give her my blood. It tainted her mouth and flowed inside her parted lips. After what it seemed like an eternity, a voice creeped inside my head: And what if it’s not enough? I’d lost a lot of blood myself, when fighting that monster. To the point I was a little dizzy. But I wouldn’t mind giving my life in exchange of hers. Our baby gave a little cry and I looked down to her. She was giggling like babies do, not knowing what was happening around her. It gave me conflicted feelings. Happiness. Fury. Sadness. Despair. Hope… All of them mixing inside of me.

My wound was starting to close when I heard the slightest sigh. I looked at Mina and noticed a faint shade of pink in her cheeks. I breathed out the air I didn’t know I was holding and I smiled at the baby. 　-Everything is going to be okay. – I repeated like a spell. I took off my shirt carefully so I didn’t drop her and wrapped her little body with it. I heard footsteps and I smelled werewolves. Gently, I put her close to Mina. Then, I stood up and took again my sword. I showed my fangs getting ready to fight as the shadow came closer. I’d never been more grateful to see Daniel in my life.

EPILOGUE: MINA POV

I woke up in a bed. I was sore and thirsty. I turned my head and saw Rupert sitting in a chair next to my bed, looking at me with the sweetest smile. He had something wrapped in a cloth in his arms. My eyes widened in recognition. 　-Good morning. - His voice sounded like a kids’ on Christmas morning. He then put her in my arms and sit close to me in bed. I looked at her eyes and I knew it was worth every moment. Rupert kissed me on my temple. 　-Good morning, Lucia.